Poway twins reunite on the volleyball court

Her life back in order, Paige Ehrlich rejoins sister Blair on Titans’ girls volleyball team

San Diego, CA 10/19/2012_Poway high school varsity girls volleyball players Paige Ehrlich #11, left, and Blair Ehrlich, #10 are not only sisters, they are twins. Here they play against Torrey Pines High School. John Gastaldo San Diego/Mandatory Credit: JOHN GASTALDO/UT SANDIEGO/ZUMA PRESS

San Diego, CA 10/19/2012_Poway high school varsity girls volleyball players Paige Ehrlich #11, left, and Blair Ehrlich, #10 are not only sisters, they are twins. Here they play against Torrey Pines High School. John Gastaldo San Diego/Mandatory Credit: JOHN GASTALDO/UT SANDIEGO/ZUMA PRESS

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Paige Ehrlich of Poway High is three minutes older than twin sister Blair.

“I hear about those three minutes all the time,” Blair said. “I’m taller, so that turned out to be a good tradeoff.”

So when Paige decided to quit volleyball last season to enroll in a military school and find a new path for a life that had gone off course, it was her younger sister who did all the talking when Paige returned home for senior year.

Eventually, Paige opted to play volleyball again, but it wasn’t one conversation that brought her back to the gym. The message had to slowly settle in before the 18-year-old fraternal twins were reunited.

With her life’s disorder settled after graduating from Sunburst Youth Academy in Los Alamitos, Paige picked up her shoes and returned to the Titans, who were led by Blair, an outside hitter.

“I needed help,” Paige said. “I was struggling in school, not hanging around with the right friends and not making the best choices.”

Paige discovered the military school on her own and took it upon herself to investigate it. What she found excited her enough to leave Poway and head to Sunburst.

Enrolling there, though, meant no volleyball.

“She knew how I felt about what she was doing with her life,” said Blair, who is 5-feet-11, 2 inches taller than Paige. “When she left, I was alone for the first time in my life. Having a twin sister means you always have a playmate who has most everything in common with you. You’re basically never alone.

“When she was away, people on the team and at school asked about her all the time. I felt like an only child.”

In the Fall Classic to open the 2012 season, Poway captured the team title and Blair was named the most valuable player. Paige was named to the all-tournament team.

“Having her back was nice,” Blair said. “Making the all-tournament team told her she made the right decision to play one more year.

“We don’t even have to talk on the court and we know what the other one is doing. We have that twin connection thing again.”

Being back on the team has been great for Paige, who now attends New Directions, an independent study program sponsored by the Poway Unified School District. She is eligible to play for the Titans.

“Going to Sunburst was the best thing I’ve ever done,” Paige said. “At the time, I had no passion for anything. It gave me back direction and motivation to move forward with my life.

“I found out I want to be a flight nurse in the Air Force one day, so something good came from something bad.”

The Ehrlich sisters began playing volleyball at age 12. Paige started as an outside hitter. Blair played middle blocker through her first two years at Poway before switching to outside hitter to fill a void on the team.